The Civil Police of Limeira, São Paulo, arrested six individuals involved in the death of Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas, aged 21. The young woman was thrown from a bridge without safety ropes during a rope jumping session.
Three men were detained in the act on the day of the incident, a Saturday (13), shortly after the fatality. They are the instructors who appear in the images launching Maria Eduarda from the structure:
- Luis Felipe Feliciano Egoroff, aged 32
- Maicon Fernandes Cintra, 42 years old
- Vitor de Freitas Gonçalves, 27 years old
The arrest of the three instructors was converted into preventive and they were transferred from the Provisional Detention Center (CDP) of Piracicaba, in São Paulo, to the Provisional Detention Center II of Guarulhos, also in São Paulo. Lawyer Rafael Gomes dos Santos, representing two of the instructors, stated that the measure aims to guarantee the physical integrity of the detainees.
The court rejected the request for habeas corpus presented by the defense of the accused.
Three other suspects are detained for alleged concealment of evidence
On the morning of a subsequent Saturday (20), the police temporarily arrested three more people. These new detainees were part of the team responsible for organizing and executing the activity:
- Evelyne dos Santos Gonçalves, 29 years old, arrested in Rio de Janeiro (RJ). She was responsible for the informal company that conducted the jumps.
- A 25-year-old man, detained in Limeira.
- A 27-year-old man, arrested in Indaiatuba, São Paulo.
Delegate Andréa Levy explained that, during the investigation, signs were found of possible suppression of evidence crucial to the investigation. This includes the disappearance of filming equipment used by the victim during the jump. The camera is considered vital by investigators for the detailed reconstruction of the facts and clarification of the dynamics of the accident.
The São Paulo Public Security Secretariat (SSP) reported that the three are suspected of deleting relevant digital content and making the camera attached to Maria Eduarda disappear at the time of the fall. The uncle of one of the prisoners reported to EPTV, a TV Globo affiliate, that his nephew worked at the bottom of the activity, providing assistance to participants after the jump.
The trio’s temporary arrest is valid for five days. The SSP added that the investigation investigates, in theory, the practice of intentional crimes against life, in the form of possible intent, in addition to possible procedural fraud.
Positioning of defenses on the accusations
Eveliny’s defense stated that she has actively collaborated with the investigations since the beginning and that the facts are being investigated. The defense of one of the men arrested this Saturday declared that they had no active participation in the jump.
Lawyer Vitor Aurélio highlighted that his clients did not have a typical or active role at the time of the jump, they only participated at the end, pulling the rope back or removing it from the participant. He highlighted that both provided assistance and even helped firefighters and police vehicles.
The lawyer also mentioned that one of them saw the camera on the victim shortly after the fall. “He saw the camera, in fact, it is in his interest for the camera to appear here, because he provided help and participated in nothing”, reinforced the defender.
Search and seizure warrants are served at addresses
In conjunction with the temporary arrests, the Court authorized the execution of search and seizure warrants at the addresses of those being investigated. Cell phones, electronic equipment and other materials were seized that could provide important information for the complete explanation of the events.
Details of the sequence of events that culminated in death
A video circulating on social media shows Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas being led by three men to the edge of the Ponte do Esqueleto platform, located in the rural area of Limeira. She is then propelled forward, and, after the fall, desperate screams such as “the rope” and “people, the rope” are heard.
The young woman fell from a height of 40 meters and was confirmed dead at the scene by the Samu and Fire Department teams. She was preparing to practice rope jumping.
Rope jumping is a sport that uses static ropes, without elasticity, generating a swinging movement after the fall, similar to a pendulum. Unlike the more well-known bungee jump, which uses elastic ropes that allow the person to fall and bounce repeatedly.
The Civil Police reported that the robust equipment that should have been attached to the victim’s body to cushion the fall was forgotten and remained rolled up on the bridge.
A witness reported that the instructors did not carry out an essential safety check when the young woman jumped. Furthermore, the group responsible for the activity was not formalized as a company, according to police information. Initially, six people were detained on the day of the incident, but only the three instructors were arrested at that time.